Risk Takers Have Less Parkinson's

Feb. 15, 2006 -- Risk takers may be less likely to develop Parkinson's disease, according to a new study.

The report, published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, doesn't encourage anyone to get reckless to prevent the brain disease. It also doesn't blame play-it-safe personalities for Parkinson's.

Instead, the study compares 106 people with Parkinson's with 106 without Parkinson's. There were fewer risk takers among those with Parkinson's disease, the study shows.

The researchers included Andrew Lees, MD, FRCP. Lees works in London at the University College London's Reta Lila Weston Institute of Neurological Studies and the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery.

Risk Takers, Risk Avoiders

Participants took several psychological tests. The tests gauged anxiety, depression, and impulsiveness in seeking sensations.

People scoring high for impulsive sensation seeking were less likely to have Parkinson's or depression. They were also more likely to be smokers and users of caffeine and alcohol.

Depression has been associated with Parkinson's disease, the researchers note. They add that people who smoke, drink, and use caffeine may be less likely to develop Parkinson's.

Smoking, drinking, and using caffeine didn't explain the results, write Lees and colleagues, who aren't recommending those habits. They caution that their study doesn't prove that risk avoidance causes Parkinson's or that risk tolerance prevents the disease.

In Parkinson's disease, certain brain cells falter in their ability to make dopamine, a brain chemical that helps coordinate the body's movements. As a result, dopamine levels drop.

Low dopamine levels may make people with Parkinson's disease less likely to seek sensations, the researchers write. If so, they're not sure which comes first -- risk avoidance or Parkinson's disease.